At the U.S. Open, Brooks Koepka Is in His Happy Place, and in Contention

Koepka, who won the U.S. Open in 2017 with a score of 16 under par, and won again in 2018, speaks almost paternalistically about the Open. His schedule this season has been tilted toward the majors — those are the only events he has played since late March — and he seems to thrive on the challenges presented by this particular tournament.

“I love this event,” he said. “This event has always been good to me.”

It’s hard to argue otherwise. Koepka is the most successful U.S. Open player of the last decade.

No one else in the 156-man field has won two U.S. Opens. The last four times he has played the tournament — he missed the Open in 2020 because of knee and hip injuries — he has two victories, in 2017 and 2018, a second-place finish in 2019 and a tie for fourth in 2021, finishes that have earned Koepka more than $6 million. In those four events, only four players — Gary Woodland, Jon Rahm, Louis Oosthuizen and Harris English, have finished ahead of Koepka.

“That’s pretty cool,” Koepka said, while adding, “I wish it was less.”

He is one of only seven players to win consecutive U.S. Opens; the last to do it before Koepka was Curtis Strange in 1988 and 1989.

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/06/18/sports/golf/brooks-koepka-us-open-liv.html